SiNi IgNite
price £150 (Annually) company Sini Software website www.sinisoftware.com
over the years, there have been a variety of utility plug-ins for 3ds Max that have attempted to make our lives easier. That is exactly what Sini (the name comes from the founding directors’ names – Simon and Nigel) is trying to do with its Ignite plug-in.
Before looking at the software, it’s worth talking about the pricing structure. Subscription services have created fierce divisions in the software community, as many developers have forced users in the direction of having to pay for software on an ongoing basis. Sini’s subscription model is therefore more likely to appeal to larger studios that are less concerned with ongoing outgoings, but may potentially put off freelancers who will see it as an unnecessary ongoing cost. Every artist is different though, so it’s up to you.
But what is the software actually offering? The utility plug-in is split into multiple different rollouts, which keeps things organised and enables you to find exactly what you need quickly and easily. The interface offers access to a lot of tools, but the Sini team have done a good job of keeping it organised and relatively clutter free.
The plug-in is broken down into a mix of tools/utilities, some of which are 3ds Max’s very own tools, and others that have been developed by Sini. To be fair to the developers, even though many of the tools are repackaged versions of existing tools, they have done a good job of improving on them and making them more useful. A good example is the animation tools, some of which are extremely helpful. The Shift Keys tool enables users to shift key frames around their timeline with optimal ease. It also lets you shift specific key types, such as only the rotation keys. This is super helpful and will be a joy to work with if you’re an animator.
One of Ignite’s unique tools is its Measure Object tool, which is brilliant. It visually gives you the length, width and height of any selected object on screen. And if you’ve only selected two or three objects, then a bonus is that it’ll also tell you the distance between those objects.
Probably the most extensive rollout is the Utility Tools rollout that gives you access to a large range of utilities developed by Sini. The company is releasing these utilities as they are developed and tested, so I wasn’t able to use many of them, unfortunately. However, I did have a quick look at the Jumble utility, and concluded that it works really well at enabling artists to randomly transform objects.
In summary, I think it is well worth checking out Ignite, and all Sini’s other plug-ins for that matter. These plug-ins will definitely make your life easier, so if you’re prepared for the ongoing cost of using them, then I definitely recommend making the investment.